The Council on Higher Education (CHE) should cede more decision-making and curriculum approval to business schools or their representative bodies, to accelerate the updating of MBAs and other academic programmes, say schools.
They say a more collaborative approach is needed to break a long-standing accreditation logjam at the state body.
Wits Business School academic director Logan Rangasamy says the South African Business Schools Association (Sabsa) is a logical option to “monitor or participate in the accreditation process”.
Sabsa is a representative body for the sector, and provides training and skills development programmes for member schools.
Business schools believe excessive demands on the CHE, which oversees the activities of all the country’s higher education institutions, are delaying updates to, and accreditation of, new MBA and other programmes. In some cases, they say, these delays run into years — preventing schools from offering best-practice content and teaching methods. The Covid-accelerated proliferation of online programmes has made the situation worse.
Nelson Mandela University Business School acting director Paul Poisat tells the FM: “Clear policy guidelines should be provided for registering new online business programmes. [The CHE should] streamline the accreditation review process.”
The CHE recognises the accreditation backlog as one of its biggest challenges. Moreover, there are discrepancies between data provided by business schools and the information found in official databases, indicating a need to better align records.
In its most recent annual report, the CHE says delays in programme accreditation have “created much dissatisfaction in the past”. One reason was an upsurge in applications to register replacement programmes after the CHE deemed many existing programmes not aligned with regulations.
“This bulge … has now been successfully handled and there is a steady decline in the number of applications,” says the CHE. “Applications are now being processed within the set timeframes.”
Some schools agree that the situation is improving. “We have found the CHE to be responsive to our new programme accreditations,” says Rhodes Business School head Owen Skae.
Rangasamy says: “There has been a significant backlog in the processing of CHE applications. However, over the past six months, the CHE has given more focused attention to this issue. All our programmes that were submitted for accreditation have been addressed, albeit after extensive delays.”
Skae adds: “The proliferation of new programmes is undeniable. I believe there is a way to give universities delegated authority to accredit programmes subject to quality assurance oversight. But there must be clear criteria.”
Appropriate regulations are necessary for our industry, and industry players must enhance their regulatory intelligence
— Morris Mthombeni
Many academics concede that the CHE is in an impossible position. It is expected to oversee and accredit more than 11,000 qualifications with the same number of staff it had when it was responsible for 3,000.
In 2004, when the CHE undertook a comprehensive reaccreditation process that introduced new MBA content criteria and forced several MBA providers to quit the market, it promised that the exercise would be repeated every five years. In the 20 years since then, there has been only one significant realignment. The capacity for more frequent intervention is not there.
“Streamlining processes and securing adequate funding will be key to enabling the CHE to fulfil its mandate,” says Henley Business School Africa dean Jon Foster-Pedley.
Morris Mthombeni, dean of the University of Pretoria’s Gordon Institute of Business Science, says the CHE is willing to accommodate “responsible innovation”. It is considering what he calls “sandboxes” for schools to experiment with “micro-credentialling” as a path towards academic qualifications — similar to the way financial regulators have allowed financial institutions to experiment with cryptocurrencies ahead of comprehensive regulations.
Others in the sector say the CHE is exploring ways to simplify the process of accreditation, including by allowing institutions with strong internal quality assurance systems to bypass some regulations.
“That said,” notes Mthombeni, “appropriate regulations are necessary for our industry, and industry players must enhance their regulatory intelligence.”
He argues that the South African higher education sector is moving from a rules-based approach to one based on principles. He wants the CHE to collaborate with international accreditation bodies such as the UK’s Association of MBAs (Amba), the European Foundation for Management Development and the US-based Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), whose standards are built on general principles rather than a stifling rulebook.
“I do understand the CHE has an essential and necessary role in maintaining the quality and standards of higher education in South Africa, but the process can sometimes be slow and cumbersome,” says Durban University of Technology Business School director Pfano Mashau.
Perhaps there are lessons that the CHE could take from beyond South Africa’s borders. Countries regarded as having effective accreditation processes for business schools include the US, the UK and Australia.
“Each country employs rigorous standards to ensure educational quality,” says Foster-Pedley. “Their systems demonstrate that effective accreditation processes involve a combination of rigorous standards, stakeholder engagement and adaptive frameworks, which South Africa could consider adopting to enhance its business education sector.”
In the US, for example, the AACSB and Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs co-operate. In the UK, it’s Amba and the Chartered Association of Business Schools.
That’s why some schools see Sabsa, which in recent years has evolved into a unified, professional presence, as a logical partner here.
One thing that is clear, says Rangasamy, is that any partner or committee appointed by the CHE to consider applications should be experts or academics from business schools. Interaction with CHE officials has shown that some do not understand the business schools sector.
“At the moment, it is not clear who is considering applications,” he says. “Some questions and issues raised by the CHE are off the mark.”
International business school accreditation bodies can play an important role in raising the standard and capacity of business education across Africa, says Sherif Kamel, board chair of the US-based Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB).
Doubters argue that African educational development is best left to Africans and does not need “colonising” Western input. But Kamel, who is dean of the business school at the American University in Cairo, says organisations such as his can contribute to the cause without imposing unwelcome ideas.
The Association of African Business Schools says it is best placed to understand the needs of the continent, but external accreditation bodies such as the AACSB, the UK-based Association of MBAs and the European Foundation for Management Development all want to extend their reach into Africa. There are clearly plenty of schools and universities willing to listen. At the AACSB’s first African conference, which took place recently at the University of Pretoria, organisers hoped for 34 participants. They got 112.
Some South African schools say they would like international business education bodies to support and advise the local Council on Higher Education, which is struggling to meet accreditation demands. Kamel says: “Sometimes we try to work with local accrediting bodies. If we can co-operate in raising the quality and impact of business education, we will.”
South Africa is home to more than half of African schools accredited by the various international bodies. Nigeria, Morocco and Egypt host the others. AACSB vice-president and chief membership officer Geoff Perry says schools from other countries are unaccredited members, hoping to use the AACSB as a quality stepping stone.
He says: “There are business schools of great potential in Africa. Though the accreditation journey is a long one, we can help schools unlock that potential by working with them on their quality journey.”
— A HELPING HAND
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